The Question of Bureau Decisions[1]

Written:Written December 2 (15), 1913Published:First published in the fourth Russian edition of theCollected Works.

      Published according to the manuscript.Source:Lenin
	  Collected Works,

      Progress Publishers,1977,

      Moscow,Volume 19,

      pages516-518.Translated:The Late George HannaTranscription\Markup:R. CymbalaPublic Domain:Lenin Internet Archive

      (2004).You may freely copy, distribute,
	display and perform this work; as well as make derivative and
	commercial works. Please credit “Marxists Internet
	Archive” as your source.•README

Today,Monday, December 2 (15), yesterday’s decision of the
Bureau on Russian affairs became known—so far from a brief
telegram. Plekhanov has announced his resignation in writing, i.e.,
resigned ofhis own accord.

TheOrganising Committee (OC), the liquidators’ leading institution,
has been affiliated, i.e., has obtained the right to representation in the
Bureau.

(Aproposof this it must be mentioned that according to the Rules, not
only the most opportunist parties, but even semi-party workers’
organisations may affiliate. The most opportunist groups of the British are
affiliated; there fore, the affiliation of the OC could not be prevented.)

Whatis the result? Plekhanov has been squeezed out by the liquidators!
If the liquidators try to rejoice over this, they must be
answered—hypocritical supporters of unity. The liquidators have
managed toreplacePlekhanov. That is the actual result. Let all
workers in general, and worker Mensheviks in particular, judge whether the
liquidators are sincerely striving for unity, whether sincere supporters of
unity would have substituted themselves for Plekhanov. Surely there cannot
be anybody so naive as to believe that the replacement of Plekhanov by a
liquidator is a steptowardsunity and notawayfrom it.

Atall events I can offer the editors an article on the subject if the
liquidators have started any foolish jubilation. It can also be added
(later) that having become affiliated, the OC members (the liquidators)
have committed themselves to becoming anentity, i.e., a
party. Probably anopen party, eh gentlemen? Time will show.

Atlast “unification has been entrusted to the executive”—says the
telegram. That means that the Executive Committee of the Bureau
(Vandervelde+Bertrand +Anseele+the Secretary Huysmans) has been
instructed to take measures or to take steps towards re-establishing unity.

Apparently(or probably) that has been done without any reproach to
us. In that case it is quite acceptable to us. It must be said that the
Executive Committee of the Bureaualwaysand unconditionally must
work for unity, and that two years ago, Huysmans, the Secretary of the
Bureau, asked Lenin in writing what measures should be adopted as a step
towards unity. Entrusting this to the Executive, therefore, is, I repeat,
quite acceptable to us, and any possible misinterpretations by the
liquidators will be simply untrue.

Nothingis said in the telegram about the seven and the six. It is
known from a letter, however, that at the be ginning of the Bureau session
a liquidator was named during the roll-call. Our representative then said
that the six had not elected him, to which Huysmans replied with an
explanation of the rules, according to which representation (from socialist
parliamentary groups) is granted only to the majorityirrespectiveof party membership. It is probable that they left it at that—one
liquidator from the seven or the eight. If such are the rules (which we
shall verify—sofarwe have had to accept the official
explanation of the rules of the Bureau by the Secretary of the Bureau at an
official session), then it was a good thing we did not waste our efforts
and did not “put in an appearance”, did not go there and make demands. It
has no practical significance. It is not convenient to speak about it in
the press. If the liquidators start rejoicing—we shall again answer them:
=

hypocritical supporters of unity, who contravene the will of the majority
of politically conscious workers.

Andso the result is as mentioned elsewhere.

Wealso see from the letter of our representative that the liquidators
have been agitating Kautsky (who represent ed the Germans) to have acommissionappointed on the question of unity. Kautsky censured
Rosa Luxemburg for her attack on Lenin and was of the opinion that nothingcould be done from abroad; it was necessary for the Russian workers to
demand unity.

Weshall await a confirmation of these statements. We are certainly in
favour ofunityin accordance with the will of themajorityof politically conscious workers in Russia.

Suchis the state of affairs according to information at present
available.Notes[1]Thisletter was addressed by Lenin to the editors ofZa Pravduwhen he received the first report of the decisions of the December session
(1913) of the International Socialist Bureau on the unification of the
R.S.D.L.P.Thequestion was raised by Rosa Luxemburg (member of the Bureau from
the Social-Democratic Party of Poland and Lithuania) in support of the
Russian liquidators, who had been defeated in their struggle against the
Bolsheviks. At the session on December 14 (N.S.), 1913, the resolution
proposed by Kautsky was adopted; in this resolution the Executive Committee
of the Bureau was instructed, allegedly for the purpose of re-establishing
the unity of the R.S.D.L.P., to organise an exchange of opinion “between
all factions of the working-class movement in Russia”.Atthe conference held in July 1914 in Brussels in accordance with the
decision of the Bureau, the leaders of the Second International, on the
pretext of “reconciling” the Bolsheviks and liquidators, demanded that
the Bolsheviks cease their criticism of the liquidators; the Bolsheviks
refused; and continued their struggle against the liquidators.

[1]Thisletter was addressed by Lenin to the editors ofZa Pravduwhen he received the first report of the decisions of the December session
(1913) of the International Socialist Bureau on the unification of the
R.S.D.L.P.

Thequestion was raised by Rosa Luxemburg (member of the Bureau from
the Social-Democratic Party of Poland and Lithuania) in support of the
Russian liquidators, who had been defeated in their struggle against the
Bolsheviks. At the session on December 14 (N.S.), 1913, the resolution
proposed by Kautsky was adopted; in this resolution the Executive Committee
of the Bureau was instructed, allegedly for the purpose of re-establishing
the unity of the R.S.D.L.P., to organise an exchange of opinion “between
all factions of the working-class movement in Russia”.

Atthe conference held in July 1914 in Brussels in accordance with the
decision of the Bureau, the leaders of the Second International, on the
pretext of “reconciling” the Bolsheviks and liquidators, demanded that
the Bolsheviks cease their criticism of the liquidators; the Bolsheviks
refused; and continued their struggle against the liquidators.